Want to Live Longer? Keep an Eye on Your Bank Account

Not having enough money to pay the bills may be the least of a cash-strapped person's problems, a new study shows. Why? Because while the richest Americans have gained an average of three years of longevity over a recent 13-year-stretch, the poorest Americans haven't increased their life expectancy at all. enter link description here

Not having enough money to pay the bills may be only the most immediate problem for cash-strapped Americans, a new study shows. Why? Because while the richest Americans have gained an average of three years of longevity over a recent 13-year-stretch, the poorest Americans haven't increased their life expectancy at all. In other words, how much money you make could directly affect how long you live—and the less money you have, the less time that could be.

The Health Inequality Project analyzed data from 1.4 billion anonymous earnings and mortality records from 2001 to 2014 and determined that higher income was associated with greater longevity and differences in life expectancy across income groups increased over time. While these results aren't surprising—irregular work hours and poor access to high-quality food can lead to serious health issues, and medical care is still a leading cause of bankruptcy in the U.S.—the size of the gap is pretty striking.

How big were those differences? According to the study released today, the richest American men live 15 years longer than the poorest men, while the richest American women live 10 years longer than the poorest women. And those differences are so stark for men that the poorest in the U.S. have life expectancies comparable to residents of Sudan and Pakistan, the study shows, while the richest men in the U.S. live longer than the average man in any country.

But what's more, wealthier women have more (years) to gain—and sadly, the poorest have more to lose. Between 2001 and 2014, top female earners gained 2.91 years in their life expectancy, compared with the 2.34 years their male peers gained. The poorest women, however, gained just 0.04 years in their life expectancy, while the poorest men increased their longevity by 0.32 years.

Here's what that actually looks like, according to the study: Women in the top 1 percent of our nation's income distribution can expect to live 88.9 years, 10.1 years longer than women in the bottom 1 percent, who will likely live to 78.8 years old.

Talk about incentive to go after that promotion or switch to a more lucrative career field. Of course, the study is quick to state that its findings do not necessarily imply that income has a casual effect on life expectancy—i.e., giving someone more money may not actually increase their life expectancy. But the study also states that the link between income and life expectancy may be driven by factors unmeasured in this particular study, including access to education or health services.

And that makes sense. After all, if it's a choice between pursuing an MBA or paying off a credit card bill, an education that could earn you more money (and extend you life) may go by the wayside. It's also safe to assume that the poorest men and women may forgo the expense of high-quality health insurance—a significant upfront cost that comes in handy at all points of life.